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Monday, January 9, 2012

Writing Prompt: By the time I arrived...

As I type this, I'm so tired my eyes keep closing on me. Which, I think, is an excellent way to start off this year's contests... (Is the sarcasm coming through? I'm too tired to judge accurately.)

The prompt for this round is By the time I arrived, I knew I was too late. (Or, by the time she/he arrived, she/he knew she/he was too late. Pick your pronouns.)

Think of the prompt sentence as the first sentence of a novel. Your goal is to write the next 100 words in such a way that the reader is drawn in.

Your entries are due on Wednesday, January 18th by 11:59pm Kansas City time. You may email it to me by clicking here or at Stephanie(at)GoTeenWriters.com. Include your first/last name, and no attachments please!

And I always send confirmation emails, so if it's been 48 hours and you haven't heard from me, feel free to check back.

Your wonderful judges this round are Shellie Neumeier and Dina Sleiman. If you plan on entering this round, feel free to leave a comment below telling these lovely ladies thank you.

Can't wait to see what you guys come up with!

Shellie NeumeierShellie Neumeier holds a degree in Secondary Education from the University of Wisconsin, Madison, with a minor in Psychology, Sociology and Social Studies. A devoted mother of four, Shellie previously worked on staff with Northbrook Church as the King’s Kids ministry assistant (serving children in grades 2nd through 5th). Shellie’s YA novel, Driven (Risen Fiction) and A Summer in Oakville (Black Lyon Publising) are available online and at your local bookstores. Her middle grade chapter book The Wishing Ring will release February 2012. She is an active member of ACFW as well as a contributing author for various blogs. Shellie is located in southwestern Ohio.

Dina Sleiman
Dina Sleiman writes lyrical stories that dance with light. Most of the time you will find this Virginia Beach resident reading, biking, dancing, or hanging out with her husband and three children, preferably at the oceanfront. Since finishing her Professional Writing MA in 1994, she has enjoyed many opportunities to teach literature, writing, and the arts. She was the Overall Winner in the 2009 Touched by Love contest for unpublished authors. Her debut novel, Dance of the Dandelion with Whitefire Publishing, is now available at amazon and other online and ebook distributors. Dina is represented by Tamela Hancock Murray of The Steve Laube Agency. She has recently become an acquisitions editor for WhiteFire as well. Join her as she discovers the unforced rhythms of grace. For more info visit her at http://dinasleiman.com/

Thanks so much great judges :)And Stephanie does it matter which email I send the prompt to? I usually send it to your Gmail. Am I not(oops) supposed to? Cannot wait to get started. SierraKeep Growing Beautiful♥ (Cause You Are!)

Sierra, it's easiest for me if you send it to my Go Teen Writers address or through my website. It helps me to better categorize.

Kait, it pains me to say it needs to stay in past tense. I love writing in present tense too, but to keep the apples-to-apples integrity of the contest, I think the sentence has to stay as is. Glad you asked, though.